The Top 10 Stories of November 27, 2012

The Top 10 Stories of November 27, 2012

Quote of the day.“This Thursday or Friday, when the question is asked, France will vote yes." France Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius, on intentions to vote for Palestinian non-member status at the United Nations.(BBC News[6])

1. Wealth rises in U.S.'s heartland.The 261 million people who live in cities and suburbs still haven't recovered earning power lost in the economic downturn. Average income per person fell 3.5% in metropolitan areas between 2007 and 2011 after adjusting for inflation, according to data released Monday by the federal Bureau of Economic Analysis. By contrast, small-town America is better off than before: Inflation-adjusted income is up 3.8% per person since 2007 for the 51 million in small cities, towns and rural areas. (USA Today[7])

2. M23 rebels say they won't leave Congo city of Goma.Congo's M23 rebels defied a deadline imposed by neighboring nations, saying Tuesday the insurgents will stay in the crucial, eastern city of Goma and will fight the Congolese army if it tries to retake it. (AP[8])

3. Obama meets Mexican leader, talks immigration.President Obama practices some hemispheric diplomacy Tuesday, meeting with the incoming president of Mexico and taking about a major U.S. domestic issue: immigration. (USA Today[9])

4. European debt crisis a bigger global threat than U.S. fiscal cliff, says OECD.Europe's debt crisis remains a far bigger threat to the world's economy than the "fiscal cliff," according to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). In its latest report the economic think tank says an escalation in the ongoing European crisis could drag Europe into a deep recession in the next two years and the U.S. along with it. (Guardian[10])

5. Liberty University allowed to argue claims against healthcare law.The Supreme Court rectified an oversight Monday and gave a Baptist university in Virginia a chance to argue in a lower court two claims that were not considered in June when the justices upheld President Obama’s healthcare law. (Chicago Tribune[11])

6. Efforts to curb social spending face resistance.President Obama’s re-election and Democratic gains in Congress were supposed to make it easier for the party to strike a deal with Republicans to resolve the year-end fiscal crisis by providing new leverage. But they could also make it harder as empowered Democrats, including some elected on liberal platforms, resist significant changes in entitlement programs like Social Security and Medicare. (New York Times[12])

7. Egypt’s Morsi appears to accept some limits on his power.Egypt’s president appeared on Monday to soften an earlier decision to take on near-absolute power, saying through a spokesman that only some of his acts would be protected from judicial review. The announcement, a day ahead of planned opposition protests, was aimed at quelling criticism of proclamations President Mohamed Morsi made last week that gave him the power to legislate by decree and without court oversight. (Washington Post[13])

8. Officials to target gun violence in Connecticut.The Obama administration is taking a cautious step toward confronting the politically tricky subject of gun violence with an initiative focused on prevention due to be unveiled on Tuesday. (Reuters[14])

9.EPA strengthens water quality guidelines for beaches.The Environmental Protection Agency updated water quality guidelines for the nation's beaches Monday, moving in response to charges that the federal government has not done enough to protect bathers from polluted water. (LA Times[15])

10. Program opens door to citizenship for immigrants.A $20-million effort is now under way to get more permanent residents to become citizens so they can vote, have access to a wider range of jobs, and become fully American. The money for the New Americans Campaign comes from major foundations and is going mainly to nonprofits that have already been doing citizenship work. (LA Times[16])